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Published: July 29th 2006
Wendy on the Train to Provence
We should have read the book before we went, but oh well.Yes, HOT! Wendy and I were shocked as we stepped off the train into a sweltering 38 degrees Celsius and NO breeze whatsoever! Yuck.
Accommodations - Wendy described our B&B best . . . a flea market with lots of dust all over. Dominique, the owner, had stuff everywhere! Nick knack central. Zero air conditioning plus three dogs that ruled the house and enjoyed humping my leg while we were trying to eat equaled us deciding to shorten our stay from six nights to three.
Towns:
Eygalieres - cute little town closest to where we stayed in Orgon. It had a couple stores and restaurants where we ate the first night.
St. Remy - not a whole lot to see here. It’s famous for being near the mental ward where Vincent van Gogh was sent after slicing off his lobe.
Les Baux - This and Gordes were my two favorites. Great shops and views and decent gelato for France.
Arles - Personally I found it hot and dirty. After seeing the Colosseum in Rome, the Roman Arena here isn’t much of a sight. And although its cool to see some of the places van Gogh painted
Provence by Car
On the road in the country. and then look at a reprint of the painting they have at the sight, Id rather see the real deal in an air conditioned museum.
Gordes - Loved this cute town that sits on top of a cliff. At the bottom of the valley was this beautiful lavender field near the Abbey (forgot the name).
Pont Du Guard and Uzes - Completed in 60 AD, this is the second highest standing Roman structure (Rome’s Colosseum is number one), the aqueduct is a popular area for people to swim and cliff jump into the water. We also swung by Uzes, a cute little town nearby.
Driving in France - We settled in on Wendy as the navigator and me as the driver. Our favorite thing in France may have been the roundabouts. Although some may find them annoying, Wendy and I embraced them as our opportunity to go round and round reading all the signs until we were confident which direction we should go. When we went to return the car and thought we were lost, Wendy looked up all excited and said, “Ooh look, a roundabout!” like we had just pulled up to Disneyland.
Food -
Sunflower Fields
I wanted to see this in Tuscany but I was early. (photo credit to wendy) I know Provence is supposed to be known for its food, and maybe I’m spoiled from too much time in Tuscany, but our best meal was a Carbonara pizza at this little pizza joint in St. Remy. Pasta, cheese, garlic, bacon and egg on top of a pizza . . . sounds weird, but it was SO good! And after a long day of sight seeing it hit the spot.
Sounds of Provence - It wasn’t until day three that we found out the loud birds chirping 24/7 were actually these little bugs called Cigales. Man, are they loud.
Overall thoughts on Provence - It’s nice and I did finally get to see my field of Sunflowers, but it’s not Tuscany.
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Billy
non-member comment
So funny!
Oh my gosh, this posting is hilarious! I'm glad you liked Gorde, I thought it was neat too... Cant wait to see where you end up next! Keep in touch.. Billy